The British public feel “very let down” by the Prince Andrew scandal, Dame Penny Mordaunt has warned. But she said King Charles has handled the situation in the right way which will help the Royal Family move forward.

The former Tory cabinet minister’s assessment came during an appearance on our weekday news show the Daily Expresso. Dame Penny, who played a starring role at the King’s Coronation in 2023, holding a ceremonial sword for more than an hour, said the monarch had been “pragmatic” in dealing with his younger brother’s controversies.

Andrew announced on Friday that he has given up use of his royal titles and honours amid intensified focus on his links with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein and accuser Virginia Giuffre.

The prince vehemently denies the allegations that Ms Giuffre was forced to have sex with him three times after being trafficked by Epstein.

Asked about the former Duke of York, Dame Penny said: “The public feel very let down because the Royal Family is about service.

“That’s why they’re there. That’s at the heart of what they do.”

Andrew, who denies all the claims against him, has been accused of asking a royal protection officer to “dig up dirt” on Ms Giuffre.

Dame Penny added: “I think the King has been right to do what he has done. He’s tried to do it in a very pragmatic way that doesn’t take up Parliament’s time. He has dealt with it well, and I hope that the focus can move off his younger brother and remain on him and what he is doing for this country in the world.”

Her remarks came as pressure mounts on Andrew to give up his 30-bedroom mansion.

Senior Tory Robert Jenrick said it was “about time Prince Andrew took himself off to live in private” as “the public are sick of him”.

Ms Mordaunt, the former Commons leader, also spoke about her new book, Pomp and Circumstance: Why Britain’s Traditions Matter.

She said the UK’s uniqueness and resilience can be its “superpower” in a very challenging world.

Heaping praise on the stoic British public, she said: “People see their government not being able to grip things, and they worry that we’re not a capable nation.

“One of the things we’re keen to point out in the book is that whilst the government is not knocking it out the park, at the moment, the nation is, I mean, we came through Covid, economically, very strong.

“We’re incredibly resilient. We have so much talent here and so much opportunity, and so the nation is still capable. What we need is transformational politics to unleash that potential.”

The former MP for Portsmouth North, who lost her seat at last year’s General Election but is plotting a return to the Commons, said Kemi Badenoch is the right person to take the country forward.

“She is doing the right thing to deal with the fundamental challenges we face,” she added.

Co-writer of Nobody’s Girl Amy Wallace told BBC Newsnight that Ms Giuffre would have welcomed Andrew’s relinquishing of his titles.

“I know that she would view it as a victory that he was forced by whatever means to voluntarily give them up,” Ms Wallace said.

“For many, maybe particularly in the United States, but maybe even in the UK, it’s a symbolic gesture but it’s an important one.

“It’s made history, modern history, in terms of the royal era.

“I mean I’ve never heard of such a thing happening and it also is just a step in the right direction.

“Virginia wanted all the men who she’d been trafficked to against her will to be held to account and this is just one of the men but… even though he continues to deny it his life is being eroded because of his past behaviour as it should be.”

Also in the wake of her memoirs, Ms Giuffre’s brother and sister-in-law, Sky and Amanda Roberts, have called on the police watchdog to review the decision by the Metropolitan Police not to continue its investigations into her allegations against Andrew.

In an interview for Channel 4 News, they urged the force to reopen their probe into Ms Giuffre’s claim that she was forced to have sex with the royal when she was aged 17, adding that if the police would not take action they felt the Independent Office for Police Conduct should review the decision.

Pomp and Circumstance: Why Britain’s Traditions Matter is available to buy from Biteback Publishing and Amazon.